Game board with pieces having recording means thereon



A. H. NEKTON Nov. 11, 1969 GAME BOARD WITH PIECES HAVING RECORDING MEANS THEREON Filed July 6. 1967 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 F 15. 2 INVENTOR. I 43 /145 M NIP/(TON BY I -HMQ Arne/vex A. H. NEKTON Nov. 11, 1969 GAME BOARD WITH PIECES HAVING RECORDING MEANS THEREON Filed. July 6, 1967 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 a 20 i 20i 20g I 11/11/11 I III] 1 I 111111! 1/ *1? W W 2/ Z 1111 170;)! m

INVENTOR. [Pd/45h- IVE/(70A! ATTORNEX Nov. 11, 1969 H, NEKTQN 3,477,715

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4/ 4,3 I? i I I g LWENTOR. ARM: H. MFKTM ATTORNEM United States Patent 3,477,715 GAME BOARD WITH PIECES HAVING RECORDING MEANS THEREON Armas H. Nekton, 32 Sunset Road, Valley Stream, NY. 11580 Filed July 6, 1967, Ser. No. 651,421 Int. Cl. H63f 3/02 US. Cl. 273-136 7 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A chess board wherein the squares have vertical openings therethrough which receive the shafts of the playing pieces and an inked pad is placed below the openings and is engageable by the bottom ends of the shafts which bear identifying indicia. The playing pieces have reduced shanks received in openings having a corresponding diameter, the lead portions of the playing pieces being disposed above the board. Releasable means are provided for latching the playing piece in suspended position above the pad. In use the game pieces are pushed into contact with the pad and are then withdrawn from the vertical openings and are stamped on a specially designed printed record sheet to indicate each play as it is made. Means are also provided for supporting a record sheet above the inked pad.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to recording apparatus for games, and particularly to apparatus or mechanism for recording successive moves of the game pieces or men in games such as chess, checkers and the like, by use of the playing pieces during actual play.

Students of the game of chess frequently find it beneficial to replay and analyze games played by themselves to find fallacies or mistakes made in their play and improve their technique. To do this it is necessary to make a record of the successive plays of the game. Also, to cope with interruptions of the game at any point or to review the status of the game at any stage, it is necessary to provide quick and simple means for recording all the positions of the pieces at any point. This invention has for .its salient object to provide apparatus for easily, quickly and accurately recording the move of each game piece as soon as it is made, thus providing an accurate record of the game.

A further object of the invention is to provide means for carrying out the invention that is simple and inexpensive in construction and can be economically manufactured.

Another object of the invention is to provide a game piece that can be easily identified and is readily accessible to the player and capable of printing individual moves on a specially designed compact record sheet.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS Further objects of the invention will appear from the following specification taken in connection with the drawings which form a part of this application and in which:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a game board embodying the invention.

FIG. 2 is a side elevation partly in section of the game board shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is an elevational view similar to FIG. 2 but showing the hinged game board in elevated position.

FIG. 4 is an elevational view similar to FIG. 3 but showing the game board closed, parts being shown in section.

FIG. 5 shows the imprints of the game pieces or men, showing the indicia thereon.

3 ,4.7 7,7 1 5 Patented Nov. 1 1 1969 'ice hTFIG. 6 is a partial plan view of a portion of the record s eet.

FIG. 7 is a sectional elevation through a portion of the game board showing one mounting for the game piece, the bottom of the game piece being in contact with the pad.

FIG. 8 is a view similar to FIG. 7 but showing a game piece in suspended position above the pad and means for releasably holding the game piece in position.

FIG. 9 is a view similar to FIGS. 7 and 8 but showing an alternative form of means for holding the game piece suspended above the pad.

FIG. 10 is a view similar to FIGS. 7, 8 and 9 but showing an alternative means for holding the game piece in suspended or elevated position.

FIG. 11 shows a further modification of the suspending means.

FIG. 12 is a plan view of a portion of a record sheet having printed squares thereon on which are recorded the plays; and

FIG. 13 is a sectional elevation of the gameboard and pad shown in FIG. 2, means being shown for holding a plate above the ink pad.

DESCRIPTION OF SPECIFIC EMBODIMENTS In the particular embodiment of the invention illustrated in the drawings, there is shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, inclusive, a gameboard consisting of a rectangular frame having four sides 10, 11, 12 and 13, the side 11 being hinged at 14 to a base 15. Above the; base 15 there is mounted ink pad 16.

The gameboard has a top 17 mounted on the sides 10 to 13 and the top is divided into squares 19 on which are mounted the playing pieces or men. There are eight horizontal rows of squares which may be sequentially designated A1 to H1, A2 to H2, A3 to H3, etc., and there are eight vertical rows of squares which may be sequentially designated to A1 to A8, B1 to B8, C1 to C8, etc.

There are two sets of playing pieces in the game of chess, one of them usually designated as the white pieces and the other designated as the black pieces. In FIG. 1 the white pieces would be mounted on the bottom of the gameboard and the black pieces would be mounted on the top.

In FIG. 13 the playing pieces for a game of chess are designated at the bottom and top of each printed square on which the moves are recorded. Thus, going from left to right, as read from Whites position, the playing pieces are as follows:

Queens Rook, Queens Knight (N), Queens Bishop, Queen, King, Kings Bishop, Kings Knight '(N), Kings Rook. Pawns are mounted in the second rows designated A2 to H2 and A7 to H7.

Each playing piece has the conventional head and body 20 disposed above the gameboard, identifying it as, for instance, Rook, Bishop, Queen, etc. It will be noted that these pieces are shaped, spaced, and proportioned to be as easily grasped and manipulated as conventional playing pieces.

Each playing piece also has a shaft 21 which extends through an opening 22 in a square on the playing board top surface 17.

It will be noted that shafts 21 are relatively small and take up very little space. On the bottom of each shaft 21,

' as shown particularly in FIG. 5, there is indicia indicating P for the white pawn. It should be noted that the smaller squares can be reduced to as little as th of an inch, while maintaining reasonable legibility, to accommodate the record of individual moves, thus permitting over 40 individual double moves (white and black), or more than the average number of moves per game, to be recorded on a single sheet, when similar sized type to fit into the smaller squares is used on the bottom of the shaft of the playing pieces, regardless of the size of the game board itself.

In FIG. 7 the shaft 21 of the playing piece has its lower end or the indicia 25 thereon resting on the ink pad 16. Shaft 21 extends through the opening 22 and is guided and held in position by a cylindrical bracket 26.

In FIG. 8 the shaft 21 of the playing piece is held in suspended position above the ink pad 16 by a magnet 30 which acts in conjunction with a metal shaft 21 or a magnetically attractable strip on shaft 21 to releasably hold the playing piece in elevated position in which the bottom is disposed above the ink pad.

In FIG. 9 the shaft 21 has an annular identation or groove 31 and the guide member or bracket 26 has mounted therein springs 32 which coact with the indented or grooved portion 31 of the shaft 21 to hold the shaft in suspended position above the ink pad 16.

FIG. 10 illustrates a further modification in which shaft 21 has a collar 33 which is engaged by a spring 34 disposed above the top 17. The spring and collar are enclosed within a cylindrical cage or casing 35 which is attached to the bottom coil of the spring.

FIGURE 11 illustrates a further modification in which the springs are punched out from the game board surface.

FIG. 12 illustrates a portion of a record sheet having printed thereon a plurality of squares, each square being numbered to correspond to a play made in the game. For instance, the square bearing the number one is used to record the first play in which the white pawn has been moved to its King 4th square and the black pawn has responded by moving to the King 4th square opposite the white pawn.

In the second move designated two, the White Knight designated N (to distinguish from the K which is used for King) has been moved to its Kings Bishop 3rd position and black has responded by moving his Knight to his Kings Bishop 3rd position.

As recorded on the sixth move in FIG. 13, White moved his Queen to his Queens Knight 4th position, capturing a black pawn, which is recorded by stamping with the playing piece within the printed circle beneath Whites first row, and bearing the legend Captured by White.

FIG. 13 shows at the corners of the bottom 15 of the playing board blocks 40 which are provided to support a relatipely stiff sheet 41, which may, if desired, be formed of metal, above the ink pad 16.

If the game is interrupted at any stage, especially after many moves, the players can readily record their positions at the time simply by lifting the hinged playing board top and inserting the sheet or plate 41 on top of the four blocks 40. A large board-size separate replica sheet 42, which is a replica of a part of the recording sheet, is placed on the plate 41. The indicia are inked on the pad 16 before the plate 41 is inserted. The individually inked pieces are pressed lightly to imprint on the squares of the replica sheet the locations of the pieces.

The plate 41 is shown in FIG. 13 in place beneath the bottoms of the playing piece shanks 21 and the board replica sheet 42 is shown above the plate 41.

From the foregoing specification it will be seen that the recording means shown and described is very simple in construction and can be economically manufactured and easily and quickly used during and simultaneously with each play to record on the miniature record sheets as shown in FIG. 12 the plays made by the blacks and the whites.

Furthermore, by lifting the playing board casing and inserting a metal plate or stitf sheet 41 on the blocks 40, a separate record can be made on a game board size replica sheet to record all the positions at any one time when the play is interrupted.

Although certain specific embodiments of the invention have been particularly shown and described, it should be understood that the invention is capable of further modifications and that changes in the arrangement and in the construction of the various parts may be made.

I claim:

1. A game apparatus for playing and recording successive plays in a game comprising, in combination:

(a) a game board having squares marked thereon,

(b) a vertical opening located in each square for receiving a playing piece,

(c) playing pieces each having an identifying head portion disposed above the game board and a reduced shank means to extend downwardly from said head portion through one of said vertical openings, each said vertical opening having a diameter that is smaller than said identifying head portion,

(d) said shank means including a contact means providing an identifying and recording indicia located on the bottom thereof to engage an ink pad means, and

(e) releasable means mounted on said board to hold said playing pieces in suspended position above a lowermost position of said playing pieces and permitting movement of the pieces in a vertical direction to said lowermost position for engaging the recording indicia with an ink pad means or a recording sheet located therebelow.

2. An apparatus as defined in claim 1 including a casing for said board having means located in the bottom thereof to support a recording sheet between the bottoms of the reduced shank means and an ink pad located therebelow.

3. An apparatus as defined in claim 1 wherein said releasable means include indentations located intermediate the ends of said shank means, and members releasably engaging said indentations.

4. An apparatus as defined in claim 1 wherein said releasable means include a spring means coacting with a collar means located on said shank means.

5. An apparatus as defined in claim 1 wherein said releasable means include a magnetic means coacting with a magnetically attractable material included as a part of said shank means.

6. An apparatus as defined in claim 1 wherein said releasable means include indentations located intermediate the ends of said shank means and spring means releasably .engaging said indentations.

7. An apparatus as defined in claim 1 including a casing for said game board having means located in the bottom thereof to support an ink pad means.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,676,086 4/1954 Wales 273-131 X 3,254,893 6/1966 Serviere 273131 FOREIGN PATENTS 765,850 3/ 1934 France.

DELBERT B. LOWE, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R- 

